Sharp White Opening Title Sequence

Sharp White Opening Title Sequence

Here is the opening sequence to our film 'Sharp White'.

I personally think the acting, camera shots and editing is quite good and am happy with how the opening sequence turned out.

Evaluation 'Bloopers'

Evaluation 'Bloopers'

While filming our evaluation we made some mistakes, luckily we caught these mistakes on camera and my group member Shannon put them together onto a short video. Me, Shannon and Keira really enjoyed filming the evaluation and the 'bloopers' that came with it.


 

EVALUATION Question Seven- Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

To answer this question our group decided it would make more sense to do it in a video as you can see us all expressing our views and opinions in person. This is a short video of me, Shannon and Keira, 3 out of 4 group members as one group member could not make it to film. This is a non scripted video, just reading questions off a sheet and answering them honestly.

EVALUATION Question Six- What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

EVALUATION Question Four AND Five- Who would be the audience for your media product? and how did you attract/address your audience?

Who would be the audience for your media product? and how did you attract/address your audience?

My group decided we would answer this question in a video so we can show the interviews in person. We all contributed in interviewing apart from one team member jasmine, who was not in school when we were filming.

We decided we would answer this question in a short video so we could express our views and opinions in person. We all did research into thriller audiences so this is just a short video saying who our target audience would be and why. Me, Shannon and Keira star in this video and our fourth team member Jasmine was not present while filming.

Pencoed Comprehensive School recently had a media showcase to show staff and other media students all our opening sequences. After watching all the films me, Shannon and Keira then interviewed a few teachers who were present in the showcase, along with the headteacher to see what they thought of 'Sharp White'.

Before the interviews took place our group member Keira typed up these questions for us so we knew what we were asking.

EVALUATION Question Three- What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

EVALUATION Question Two- How does your media product represent particular social groups?

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

EVALUATION Question One- In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Effect	Scene	Evidence
Use of narrative		The scene opens with a victim dead on the floor with a big deep cut on her head and blood smudged on the floor surrounding her, this represents a 'struggle' and connotes the 'thriller' genre.
Mise-En-Scene		We decided to use fast jump cuts of the open wounds of the victim and the blood splattered floor, this represents a murder has taken place. There are also ‘camera shutter’ sound effects as the evidence cards showed, this shows the audience that the victims living room has now become a crime scene.
Editing Techniques	short clip of the phone call (below)	We used a variety or editing techniques while producing our sequence. The one that stands out the most is the emergency phone call. We decided to record a two way phone call which involves me reporting a murder. My group member Shannon recorded the phone call via her Smartphone and uploaded it to an application called 'iMovie', she then made it compatible and then smoothly merged it into the film.
Use of Camera	SOME OF THE DIFFERENT SHOTS USED.	Sharp White includes a variety of different shots, these include; a medium shot, long shot, close up, mid shot, wide shot and over the shoulder shot.
Special Effects		The only special effects used in our sequence are the titles; these include the film title and the actor’s names. Our group decided to keep the font plain as we didn't fancy a complicated style. The 'Sharp' is grey and the 'White' is white to emphasize and make the word stand out.

How Gender is represented in Films

How Gender is represented in Films

I find that gender is very stereotypically represented in films with men being the 'heroes' and woman being represented as 'objects' (mainly sexually and emotional).I discovered that woman are presented to be emotional and beautiful while men are presented as tough and less emotional. Men are also likely to be the leader with the woman following behind or listening to the man's instructions.

I discovered that gender is very stereotypically presented in 'The Strangers' as the male character overpowers and protects the female character.

Research into Existing Film Titles

Research into Existing Film Titles

After researching a few film titles (below) I discovered that thriller film titles have similarities. I noticed that 'SE7EN', 'The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo' and 'The Ring' all have similar title fonts as their all white with a black background. 

My group member Shannon did the film title research and came up with several film title fonts. After a group discussion we decided we would use the most 'sharp' and thrilling font for out film title.

www.dafont.com

Sharp White Film Cover

Sharp White Film Cover 

This is the official DVD cover of our film 'Sharp White'. The cover is very dark with a black and white background with brown and red blended in, this represents Sharp White is a chilling film.

Our film cover is a typical one with a review, title, film certificate, and a logline.

Marketing and Distribution

Marketing and Distribution 

This post shows how we advertised 'Sharp White' and how 'The Strangers' was advertised and what the two films have in common with Marketing and Distribution.

Sharp White Advertising

My group member Shannon made this advert which could possibly be used in a newspaper or magazine. I think that because theres very little information on there it will be a major pull factor as people may want to find out more, maybe they would google 'Sharp White' or visit their local cinema.

We also created a Tumblr account, this is very rare with films as you dont usually see Tumblr accounts like this. Many Teenagers use Tumblr everyday and thats who 'Sharp White' is targeted at so by doing this we have again attracted viewers.

We also did tweets on our Twitter account to help advertise 'Sharp White'. With a link to the official YouTube video, if people liked what they could see they could re-tweet it and help us by getting 'Sharp White' around.

We decided to put links on our Facebook so all our friends and family could watch some of the clips, which would hopefully encourage them to watch the whole film. 


The Strangers Advertising

When 'The Strangers' first hit the big screen there were television adverts, billboards, in magazines and on the side of bus stops. 'The Strangers' were advertised very well as the production companies wanted people to view the film in order for it to be successful.

I would probably do the same as 'The strangers' by advertising nationwide on:

-Public Transport

-Television Adverts

-Paper based (newspapers and magazines)

-Radio

- Bus Shelters

-Trailers in the cinema when other movies are on

I think that if Sharp White was advertised on all the above then it would be very successful as people would see it advertised on a daily basis and be drawn in to see it.

I would advertise on all 

Channels like the ones shown below excluding CBBC, cbeebies, Citv, POP, POP GIRL and tiny pop as 'Sharp White' is not suitable for children.

The Strangers Production Company

The Strangers Production Company

Sharp White is related to 'The Strangers' so i decided to do some research into the production company and how they advertised the film when it first came out.


'The strangers' had two production companies, Universal Studios and Mandate Pictures. These are very popular and well known production companies as they have had previous success before 'The Strangers'.

The opening weekend was very successful with £1,250,624 made on 29th August 2008. The gross was £4,025,916 by 19th September 2008. I realised that having a good production company(s) and good advertising makes the film successful.

If i was to pick a production company for Sharp White I would most definitely choose either Universal Studios or Mandate Pictures, this is simply because 'The Strangers' were so successful thanks to these production companies.

Advertising Sharp White

Advertising Sharp White

We will advertise Sharp White on social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. The reason we are going to advertise on these sites are because they are very popular as millions of users log into them everyday so its a great way to advertise our film. We are hoping that once people have seen the adverts for Sharp White they will be interested in purchasing it. I feel that advertising on social networking sites will be a huge advantage for us as the sites contain millions of younger adults, and thats exactly who the film is targeted at.

Production Company-Working Title Films

Working Title Films

I researched a production company called 'Working Title Films'. Working Title Films is a British film production. The company's base is situated in London. The company was originally founded by Tim Bevan and Sarah Radclyffe back in 1983. The production company produces feature films and several television productions. Rowan Atkinson has starred in some of their films. Eric Fellner and Tim Bevan are now the co-owners of the popular production company. Working Title Films have achieved box office hits including Shaun of the Dead, Love Actually and Paul. Working Title Television is a joint venture with NBCUniversal and will be based in Los Angeles and London. NBCUniversal is Working Titles parent company. Back in 1991 Working Title was involved in a bid for the London weekend ITV licence.

Paul is one of many box office hits, thanks to Working Title Films!




Working Title was involved in a major bid for the London Weekend ITV license.

Film Certificate for Sharp White

Film Certificate for Sharp White

We had a group discussion and came to a conclusion to give our film the same film certificate as 'The Strangers'. 'Sharp White' has an '15' certificate on it, we decided this would be the best rating as there is strong language, intense violence, gruesome scenes and other elements that are not suitable for younger viewers. Children under the age of 15 are not allowed to attend this screening unless accompanied by a parent/guardian or a responsible adult. They will also not be allowed to purchase the 'Sharp White' DVD without being asked for some sort of ID.

What the audience thought of Sharp White

What the audience thought of Sharp White

I decided to set up a quick questionnaire to find out what the public thought of sharp white.

I asked five people to fill in my questionnaire and here are some of the results I received.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/analyze/?survey_id=38028274

Why opening title sequences are so important to the film industry

Why opening title sequences are so important to the film industry

The title sequence of a movie can often be the most important part of the film, this is simply because these are the very first images the audience sees (apart from trailers). The title sequence lasts around two to three minutes and can set up the genre, the storyline, the directors intentions and the expectations of the audience.If the audience likes the opening sequence then they will have a good first impression of the film and will most probably be drawn in to watch the rest of the film. Another important element of the the opening sequence is that it tells us who directed the film and who stars in it. Viewers may like any actors or directors previous work, so this may also draw viewers in to watch the film. Taken account of all this, i think the opening sequence is important and crucial to the film industry.

Music Choices for Sharp White

Music Choices for Sharp White
We decided not to use any music in Sharp White, just sound effects.


-We used a 'Heartbeat' sound effect, this signifies someones heart is racing and shows someone is scared, this gives our film a very tensioning feel, which is great as Sharp White is listed in the thriller genre.





-We also used 'Rain Heavy Thunder' and 'Ship in Heavy Sea' sound effects as this gave Sharp White a very cold and scary feel, which is great as the film is listed in the thriller genre.

Logline of Sharp White

Logline of Sharp White

Sharp white is related to the storyline of 'the strangers' with 3 masked strangers entering a house and killing a victim for no specific reason.

Sharp White Shot List

Sharp White Shot List

We used a variety of shots while filming Sharp White, here are the shots we used...

Long Shot:

Medium Shot:

Close Up:

Extreme Close Up:

Over The Shoulder Shot:

Location Shot

We filmed part of Sharp White in this location in Pencoed. This location is where the three strangers watch the victim (Shannon) enter her car, then her house.

Choosing Our Title

 Choosing Our Title 

When it came to choosing the title for our film we thought it would be best to have a group discussion, this included us writing up a mind map and brainstorming ideas, in the end we decided on the name 'Sharp White'.

Preparing Filming for Sharp White

Preparing Filming for Sharp White

We had a lot of preparing to do before we started filming.

Storyboards- We had to create a storyboard that was relevant to our chosen genre, we would then use this storyboard step by step to film Sharp White.

Script- We had to create a script so we knew what was going to be said. The movie was basically silent but there was an emergency phone call at the beginning, so that was scripted.

Location- We all had to agree with a suitable location to film Sharp White, after a group discussion we all agreed we would film at Jasmines house as it was a suitable location.

Props- We had to find 3 masks for our film, after an hour of asking around the school we finally come across three masks in the Drama Department, we asked if we could borrow them for filming and the answer was yes so we could tick the box for props.
We also needed scar wax (to create a real looking, fresh and deep scar!) and fake blood...Jasmine sorted this out and ordered it online and it was worth it as it looked brilliant and very realistic!

When we would film- We all had to agree on what days we would film Sharp White. After a small group discussion we came to a conclusion...we would film for several hours within a two day period and thats all the time we needed.

Sharp White Script

Sharp White Script

The only talking in Sharp White was the emergency phone call, this is how it went...

Jasmine- 999 whats your emergency?

Me- *Breathing heavily*

Jasmine- 999 whats your emergency?

Me- She's dead! She's dead!

Jasmine- Sir, where are you?

Me- Help me, please help me, I think their still here!

*phone gets cut*

Jasmine played the voice of the policewoman and I played the voice of the victim.


*The phonecall was recorded on shannon's mobile phone and then transferred and edited onto our film.